Jeremiah 38

A King Who Would Not Hear the Word of the LORD

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Then Zedekiah the king sent, and took Jeremiah the prophet unto him into the third entry that is in the house of the LORD: and the king said unto Jeremiah, “I will ask thee a thing; hide nothing from me.”  Then Jeremiah said unto Zedekiah, “If I declare it unto thee, wilt thou not surely put me to death? And if I give thee counsel, wilt thou not hearken unto me?” So Zedekiah the king sware secretly unto Jeremiah, saying, “As the LORD liveth, that made us this soul, I will not put thee to death, neither will I give thee into the hand of these men that seek thy life.”  Then said Jeremiah unto Zedekiah,
“Thus saith the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel; If thou wilt assuredly go forth unto the king of Babylon’s princes, then thy soul shall live, and this city shall not be burned with fire; and thou shalt live, and thine house: but if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylon’s princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand.”  And Zedekiah the king said unto Jeremiah, “I am afraid of the Jews that are fallen to the Chaldeans, lest they deliver me into their hand, and they mock me.”  But Jeremiah said, “They shall not deliver thee. Obey, I beseech thee, the voice of the LORD, which I speak unto thee: so it shall be well unto thee, and thy soul shall live.  But if thou refuse to go forth, this is the word that the LORD hath shewed me: and, behold, all the women that are left in the king of Judah’s house shall be brought forth to the king of Babylon’s princes, and those women shall say, ‘Thy friends have set thee on, and have prevailed against thee: thy feet are sunk in the mire, and they are turned away back.’  So they shall bring out all thy wives and thy children to the Chaldeans: and thou shalt not escape out of their hand, but shalt be taken by the hand of the king of Babylon: and thou shalt cause this city to be burned with fire.”
Jeremiah 38:14-23

The word  of God should be heard, believed, and practiced in and on any day that we live.  Presidents, Prime Ministers, Kings, and Governors need  to hear and take heed to the word of the LORD, so that they can learn  they are to be servants of the people, and do good to and for the people.

Zedekiah called Jeremiah asking counsel of what he was to do.  The prophet told him to go out to the king of Babylon, and surrender to him.  Had Zedekiah obeyed the LORD the king of Babylon would leave him alive, as well as his family and he would not destroy Jerusalem

Zedekiah does not hear and heed the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah, and the word of God comes to pass just as He has spoken.  O, how we the people of God need to take heed to the word of the LORD.  The word of the LORD is good for living all of life; with it’s troubles and trials.

Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God is the Living Word of God, and God His Father, says to us “Hear Him” (Matthew 17:5) and the Father also says, “This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” You cannot get it any clearer than that.  If God says He is well pleased by His Son we need to ask “Why?” and that is because the Father knew that He was the only perfect Propitiate  for the sins of Adam  kind.  Jesus had no sin, and became sin in our place and took all the wrath of God on Himself on the cross, dying for our sins, being buried; carrying our sins away, and then on the third day He rose from that grave alive.

Today, there  is a Man in heaven, seated at the right hand of God, and He is our Mediator with the Father (1 Timothy 2:5).

Repenting of your sins turn to Jesus believing Him, putting all your trust in Him.  He will hear you when you call on His name.

A Weak and Frightened King

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Then said Jeremiah unto Zedekiah, “Thus saith the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel; ‘If thou wilt assuredly go forth unto the king of Babylon’s princes, then thy soul shall live, and this city shall not be burned with fire; and thou shalt live, and thine house: but if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylon’s princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand.’ ”  And Zedekiah the king said unto Jeremiah, “I am afraid of the Jews that are fallen to the Chaldeans, lest they deliver me into their hand, and they mock me.”  But Jeremiah said, “They shall not deliver thee. Obey, I beseech thee, the voice of the LORD, which I speak unto thee: so it shall be well unto thee, and thy soul shall live.  But if thou refuse to go forth, this is the word that the LORD hath shewed me: and, behold, all the women that are left in the king of Judah’s house shall be brought forth to the king of Babylon’s princes, and those women shall say, ‘Thy friends have set thee on, and have prevailed against thee: thy feet are sunk in the mire, and they are turned away back.’ ”
Jeremiah 38:17-22

What if the Will of the LORD was to Surrender

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‘But Jeremiah said, They shall not deliver thee. Obey, I beseech thee, the voice of the LORD, which I speak unto thee: so it shall be well unto thee, and thy soul shall live.” Jeremiah 38:20 (KJB)

The word “Surrender” is not a word most people of Adam’s race wants to use. We have phrases from the past here in the USA like, “Better dead, than Red”, and most people my age and older knows the meaning of that phrase. I know, and I feel that way still today, but that is not the topic at hand.

Surrender is the giving up of yourself to someone of greater power, or value than oneself. We like our freedom and our freedoms we have here in the United States of America.  Let us think for a moment about the words of Jeremiah to the king of Judah who was Zedekiah.

Jeremiah had been locked up, thrown in a miry pit, and left to die (Jeremiah 38:1-13), and had been rescued, with the approval of the king, by an Ethiopian named Ebedmelech. The king had sent for the prophet seeking his counsel, and Jeremiah gave him the word and will of the LORD. In verses 13 – 19 the king is given the word of the LORD, the way of the LORD, and will of the LORD.  That word can be summed up in one word; that word “Surrender”.

The word from God for the Christian today is surrender your word to God’s word.  Surrender your will to God’s will.  Surrender your way to God’s way.  When we do so; even if that way seems tough, rough, rocky, slippery, and like it might be a loss of our freedom – Surrender.

Zedekiah was not being commanded to surrender to the enemy. He was being commanded to surrender to GOD.

We are not being commanded to surrender to our weaknesses, fears, failures, foolish ambition, or an enemy. The command is “Surrender to the One who has our best interest at heart and mind”.  He knows what is best. The end result for Zedekiah was not good (Read chapter 39).  He did not obey. He did not surrender.

Think of Jesus Christ the Son of God, God who became flesh, humbled Himself, surrendered to the will of His Father, even unto death; so that He might redeem unto Himself all who would be given to Him by the Father.  Jesus died on the cross, was buried, and He rose again.  Hear Him, and call on His name and He will give you eternal life with Him.